FALL RIVER — Opiate painkillers are an important piece of the puzzle to reversing the spike in opioid-related overdoses several communities are experiencing in Massachusetts.

“There is a perception that opiate painkillers are clean drugs, that they must be OK since a doctor prescribed them,” said Tom Pasternak, owner of Walsh Pharmacy on Rock Street and chairman of the BOLD Coalition of Fall River.

Molecularly almost identical to heroin, opiate painkillers such as Oxycontin and Percocet are as prone to addiction and abuse, including overdoses.

Southcoast Hospital Group reported that it has treated 14 opioid-related overdoses this year so far and has seen 74 cases of opioid abuse. The system has also treated 116 heroin overdoses and seven methadone overdoses so far this year, according to a Southcoast Hospital Group spokeswoman.

Meanwhile, the emergency room at St. Anne’s Hospital in Fall River has treated seven opiate-related overdoses in March alone, said Anne Ferreira, a spokeswoman for St. Anne’s Hospital.

At least 140 people have died from suspected heroin overdoses in communities across Massachusetts in the last several months. From 2000 to 2012, the number of unintentional opiate overdoses increased by 90 percent, according to state health officials.

In Taunton, nine people have died from heroin overdoses this year. That city has also seen at least 132 reported overdoses in 2014, according to the Taunton Daily Gazette.

In Fall River, Emergency Medical Services Director John Duclos estimates that first responders have treated about 50 opioid-related overdoses this year.

“It’s been steady. We really haven’t had any big spikes or the big batches coming in that are tainted with Fentanyl,” Duclos said, referring to a powerful opiate often used as a cutting agent with street-level heroin.

That the potent batches of heroin reported in Taunton have not made their way to Fall River is surprising, given that much of the heroin that circulates through SouthCoast often comes from Providence, a supply hub for the local drug market.

“It all depends on when they get (the heroin), who’s cutting it for them, what they are cutting it with,” Duclos said. “We haven’t seen nothing major, but come May or June, it might hit. You know when it does. It’s horrendous. It’s devastating for everybody.”

“I’m very concerned that any given moment, potentially we could see an increase of overdoses in the community,” Fall River Mayor William Flanagan said.

“We have a very strong network in the city for treatment and prevention and we’ve been very successful in our treatment and prevention programs,” Flanagan said. “But despite our success, the epidemic is still very prevalent in the community.”

Page 2 of 2 - Local drug treatment counselors are also concerned about the effects that Zohydro, a new powerful, extended-release opioid with a high dose of hydrocodone, could have when it is readily available. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Zohydro last October, and its maker, Zogenix, a California-based pharmaceutical company, has begun shipping supplies to pharmacies.

“Once Zohydro hits and gets to the street, we’re going to see overdoses everywhere,” state Rep. Alan Silvia said. “It’s going to cause damage and add to the problem that already exists here.”

On Thursday, Gov. Deval Patrick, in declaring a public health crisis, directed the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to take several emergency action steps that include immediately prohibiting the prescribing and dispensing of Zohydro and any hydrocodone-only formulation until “adequate measures” are in place to safeguard against the potential for diversion, overdose and misuse. The governor’s office said introduction of this new painkiller into the market poses a significant risk to individuals already addicted to opiates and to the public at large.

The wave of heroin overdoses has generated publicity for a problem that has been entrenched in the region for almost two decades, since physicians first began prescribing opiate painkillers. Instead of heeding advice to lose weight, exercise and become healthier, even people with moderate pain want to be prescribed medication, said Laura Washington, the BOLD Coalition Program Director for Stanley Street Treatment and Resources.

“We’ve become a pain-free society,” Washington said. “But addiction is rampant because of that.”